Field Quality & Warranty Engineer

Location: Novi, Michigan with domestic U.S. travel
Employment Type: Full-time
Department: Quality
Supervisory Responsibilities: No direct reports
Travel: 40–60% domestic travel throughout the United States; occasional short-notice travel required

Position Overview

The Field Quality & Warranty Engineer is responsible for supporting warranty-related activities and ensuring the quality, reliability, and performance of A123 Systems' High Voltage Energy Storage System (ESS) products deployed throughout the United States. This role is focused on ESS container systems and serves as the primary customer quality representative for field service operations, customer warranty investigations, and third-party service provider oversight.

The successful candidate will work closely with Engineering, Manufacturing, Service, Warranty, Supplier Quality, customers, and contracted service providers to investigate field issues, identify root cause, implement corrective and preventive actions, and verify field repairs are performed safely and in accordance with A123 quality and technical requirements.

Primary Responsibilities

Warranty & Field Quality

• Lead warranty investigations for deployed ESS container systems.

• Primary contact for any warranty & quality related inquiries.

• Review field failures and determine root cause using structured problem-solving methodologies, including 8D, 5-Why, Fishbone, DFMEA, and PFMEA.

• Coordinate containment actions, corrective actions, and preventive actions with Engineering, Manufacturing, Service, Warranty, Suppliers, and customers.

• Manage Return Material Authorization (RMA) activities and field failure documentation for customer and field product returns.

• Analyze warranty trends, field quality metrics, and returned-product data to identify recurring product, process, supplier, or service-related issues.

• Prepare technical reports and communicate findings, risk assessments, countermeasures, and action plans to internal management and customers.

• Support warranty cost reduction initiatives through robust root cause analysis and permanent corrective action implementation.

Third-Party Service Oversight

• Oversee third-party service providers performing maintenance, troubleshooting, commissioning support, inspections, and repairs on 20-ft ESS containers in the field.

• Verify field repairs meet A123 quality standards, service procedures, safety requirements, and customer expectations.

• Conduct field audits of contractors, service partners, repair practices, documentation, and workmanship.

• Review service documentation, repair reports, inspection records, test data, and closeout packages for accuracy and completeness.

• Ensure compliance with high-voltage safety procedures, lockout/tagout requirements, PPE standards, and applicable site-specific work rules.

• Provide technical guidance and quality support during critical field repairs, escalations, and customer-impacting issues.

Field Technical Support

• Support commissioning, startup, field acceptance testing, and quality-related site readiness activities on ESS Container systems as required.

• Assist with troubleshooting of electrical, mechanical, controls, battery system, and container-level ESS issues.

• Interface directly with customers regarding field quality concerns, warranty status, corrective actions, and issue resolution plans.

• Support Engineering with design, process, documentation, and serviceability improvements based on field experience and lessons learned.

• Participate in failure analysis of returned components and coordinate supplier quality investigations when required.

• Clearly communicate technical information, findings, and failure analysis results to internal and external stakeholders.

Continuous Improvement

• Monitor field quality metrics, warranty performance, reliability data, and repeat-failure trends.

• Develop and support corrective and preventive action (CAPA) activities to improve product quality, field reliability, and customer satisfaction.

• Support PFMEA, control plans, lessons learned, service procedures, inspection plans, audit sheets, and quality documentation updates.

• Identify opportunities to improve product reliability, maintainability, serviceability, and first-time fix rate.

• Develop or update quality documentation, work instructions, inspection standards, and reporting templates for field service activities.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Quality Engineering, or related technical discipline, or equivalent technical experience.

• Minimum 5 years of experience supporting high-voltage electrical products.

• Experience supporting warranty investigations, field quality, customer quality, or service quality activities.

• Experience leading or technically supporting service organizations or contractors.

• Strong knowledge of lithium-ion battery systems, power conversion equipment, industrial electrical systems, or comparable high-voltage products.

• Ability to read and interpret electrical schematics, mechanical drawings, wiring diagrams, test data, and control system documentation.

• Experience using structured problem-solving and quality tools such as 8D, 5-Why, Fishbone, SPC, capability analysis, DFMEA, and PFMEA.

• Experience working with customer quality issues, RMA processes, corrective action, and failure analysis.

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to present technical information to customers and management.

• Ability to work independently, prioritize multiple field issues, and make sound decisions with minimal supervision.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with Energy Storage Systems (ESS/BESS) is highly recommended.

• Experience supporting utility-scale, commercial, or industrial ESS installations.

• Experience with Battery Management Systems (BMS), Power Conversion Systems (PCS), SCADA, industrial controls, or containerized high-voltage systems.

• Knowledge of lithium-ion battery cells, modules, packs, and system-level integration.

• Six Sigma Green Belt, Six Sigma Black Belt, or ASQ Certified Quality Engineer certification.

• Experience with PPAP, APQP, control plans, safe launch, process audits, and automotive quality systems.

• Experience supporting field commissioning, service organizations, or customer-facing technical escalations.

Required Skills & Abilities

• Strong high-voltage safety knowledge, including PPE, electrical hazard awareness, and safe work practices.

• Hands-on troubleshooting capability with a practical, field-oriented approach.

• Strong analytical, organizational, project management, and problem-solving skills.

• Ability to interface effectively with internal teams, external customers, suppliers, contractors, and field technicians.

• Ability to compile, analyze, and interpret field data, warranty data, service records, and quality metrics.

• Proficiency with Microsoft Office applications; experience with Minitab, Jira, Microsoft Project, or similar tools is a plus.

• Professional demeanor and sound business judgment when working in customer-facing environments.

Key Success Metrics

• Warranty claim resolution time.

• First-time fix rate and reduction in repeat field failures.

• Timely closure and effectiveness of corrective actions.

• Field quality performance and warranty cost reduction.

• Customer satisfaction and responsiveness to escalations.

• Third-party service provider audit performance and documentation quality.

• Improved reliability, maintainability, and serviceability of deployed ESS systems.